My vision is to hand over a reunified Cyprus in 2023, President says

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades has reiterated that this will be his last term in office, stressing that his vision is to hand over a reunified country in 2023.

President Anastasiades was addressing, on Saturday, the 16th Pancyprian Democratic Rally Congress, in Nicosia.

This is my last term in office, he said, stressing that my vision is when I hand over in 2023 to hand over a reunified homeland.

A modern homeland, he said, a homeland which we are all proud of and which is the outcome of everyone’s joint cooperation.

He acknowledged that since the government does not have a majority in parliament any vision, it has for the future needs to be shared and discussed constructively with other parliamentary parties.

If you don’t reach a compromise, you will not achieve the best possible results, which is what our people seek and call for and what all political forces seek.

Referring to the presence in the Congress of leaders and representatives of parliamentary parties and of Turkish Cypriots he said that it demonstrates that in Cyprus there is respect and a political culture cultivated which creates the prospects for co-creation.

What is necessary is, finally, is through mutual respect, the respect of EU principles and values, the United Nations Charter, cooperating together, to reach a solution which will restore the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Cyprus and will give everyone an opportunity, he said.

According to Cyprus President it is necessary to create those prospects which will allow us to regard the future with optimism but also to have a state which will have stability and will offer peace and prospects to its citizens.

President Anastasiades also praised constructive, objective criticism which as he put it aims to correct the government’s mistakes and promised to always seek consensus to reach decisions for the benefit of everyone.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied 37% of its territory. Repeated UN-led efforts to reunite the island have not yet yielded any results.